Two cases going viral question police force, profiling

Oct. 5, 2013
|

A photo of Marlon Brown provided by his family. A video of a police cruiser chasing Brown and then rolling over his body led to the officer's firing and an ongoing campaign to see charges brought against that officer. / Handout

by Yamiche Alcindor, USA TODAY

by Yamiche Alcindor, USA TODAY

The stories of two black men killed during interactions with police officers have set the internet ablaze and resurfaced questions about racial profiling, police brutality, and the power of social media.

Marlon Brown, 38, and Jonathan Ferrell, 24, both lost their lives during incidents with police officers who have now come under fire for their actions. A video of a police cruiser chasing Brown and then rolling over his body led to the officer's firing and an ongoing campaign to see charges brought against that officer.

An officer who shot Ferrell, who was unarmed, 10 times is now facing a voluntary manslaughter charge.

Experts say both cases illustrate that social media and technology have led to closer scrutinization of police behavior. Many pointed to the case of Rodney King, the black motorist whose videotaped 1991 beating by white police officers helped spark the deadly Los Angeles riots, as an example of the historical power of earlier technology.

"In the past, the police would make up stories that were inaccurate because they were the only witnesses," said Kevin Flesch, a criminal defense attorney who has worked on police brutality cases since 1996. "They can't sort of ban together as they did before and these things can go viral because you can see them more quickly."

In his view, the stories of Brown and Ferrell and the national attention they are getting is indicative of this change. The outrage that has ensued has brought pressure that may not have been possible without the ability to spread the word about these stories. Websites and social media conversations carried the stories out of southern cities and into the living rooms of people across the country.

For Brown, the video of him running from police in DeLand, Fla. moments before he was killed remains a central part of his story. On May 8 at about 12:30 a.m.,a police officer tried to pull over Brown for a seat belt violation. In response, Brown took off in the car and later began running on foot from police. In a police dash camera video, Officer James Harris is seen driving behind Brown. What happened next remains an issue of contention.

The medical examiner's report says Brown slipped while he was running and Harris' vehicle came to rest on top of Brown who then suffocated. Brown's autopsy was conducted by Shiping Bao, a controversial figure who also conducted Trayvon Martin's autopsy and has since been fired. However, Marie Herrmann, Chief Medical Examiner of Volusia County reviewed the findings and signed off on them.

Still, Brown's family maintains that the police officer struck Brown and should be charged with homicide. A video of the chase has gone viral eliciting arguments about what is shown. Despite the differing opinions, DeLand Police Chief William Ridgway, after viewing the tape, fired Officer Harris.

"The actions taken by Officer Harris that night are not consistent with our department's training, directives, or accepted practices or techniques," said Ridgway in a statement, adding that the department is continuing to internally review the incident.

Ferrell's death in Charlotte, N.C. got an even quicker response from police and the public. At around 2 a.m. Sept. 14th, Ferrell , after dropping off a co-worker, likely missed a curb and ended up in a ravine, said Christopher Chestnut an attorney for Ferrell's family. The young man then kicked out a window in the car and knocked on the door of a nearby home. A woman who was home alone with her child called 911 and reported that a burglar was attempting to enter her home.

Minutes later, three police officers arrived, Chesnut said.

According to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, Ferrell ran towards the officers. One unsuccessfully tried to taser him. The other, Officer Randall Kerrick, fatally shot Ferrell 10 times. The same day police charged Kerrick with voluntary manslaughter saying he used excessive force.

Though it appears Kerrick will have to explain his actions to a judge, Chesnut is still pushing for the police dash camera video of the incident to be released. He says it shows a barefoot Ferrell approached officers with his hands up and recorded the rapid fire shots.

Allowing the public to see the video will help the country address why it happened and how Ferrell's story connects with Brown's and others, Chestnut said.

"America should address and confront the image of black men," said Chesnut, explaining that stereotypes of black men as dangerous contributed to Ferrell's death. "I don't think race is the factor but I think it was a factor that led to him being shot 10 times."

Ben Crump, who represented the family of Trayvon, agrees and is now helping Brown's family push for charges. Like several others, Crump says Brown's race made officers chase him for a seemingly minor offense.

"There seems to be an insensitivity for the life of young black males," Crump said. "It seems to suggest that it's OK to be reckless when it comes to police interactions with black males."

Backing that stance up is what Brown's family says is objective evidence: the video of the last moments of Brown's life.

"Once America had seen the video, a lot of people's opinions changed," said Krystal Brown, Marlon Brown's ex-wife. "Little old DeLand is the spotlight for Marlon but injustice is happening everywhere."

But Bill Manion, a forensic pathologist in New Jersey, also believes Brown was not hit by the car. Manion says Brown lacked fractures in his legs, arms, hips, head and other areas that would be consistent with such an impact.

In this case, what some in the public think they see is not supported by science.

The dilemma can cause people to wrongly second guess police officers, said Todd Walther, president of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 9. The organization is providing the attorney for Kerrick, who is a member, to fight the charges in Ferrell's death.

Walther wouldn't talk about Kerrick but did offer that training not technology makes officers act correctly.

"People make judgements on two seconds of a video that may be twenty minutes long," he said, "You just have to wait and see the entire story that comes out in any situation."

No doubt, many people are waiting to see how the stories of Ferrell and Brown play out.

King's beating by four white police officers following a high-speed car chase was caught on videotape by an amateur cameraman, who gave a copy to a local TV station. Three officers were initially acquitted of assault and excessive force charges. A mistrial was declared for a fourth. However, riots followed and later, two officers were convicted of federal charges. King got a $3.8 million settlement in a civil rights case.

In 2009, Victor Steen, 17, was killed while riding his bike when he refused to stop for a police officer, according to various reports. The officer fired a taser at Steen and then ran the teen over with his police cruiser. The incident was captured on video and viewed nearly 30,000 times on YouTube. A judge later ruled that the officer had not committed any crimes, reports said.

Krystal Brown, last Friday, filed a complaint with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Medical Examiners Commission saying the findings of the Volusia County Medical Examiner's office "defy logic, common sense, and seemingly scientific principles." She's asking for an independent investigation into Brown's death and into whether Herrmann violated any rules.

Last Saturday, the family of Ferrell buried the young man who had hoped to become a mechanical engineer and who was working two jobs to save money to go school. His family may likely face his killer in court.

At each solemn step, the public will be watching.

Mark Anthony Neal, an African & African-American Studies professor at Duke University, said that type of mass surveillance will help others question the acts of police officers but may also desensitize people to such stories.

"There is still a difficulty in seeing the humanity of black men," Neal said. "Our ability to capture these stories overwhelms our ability to process them."